claydavisdbc

I have some questions regarding CMU Pre-College. I will be a junior this year and I'm already thinking about my college auditions. The thing is, I'm just not good at picking songs for me, and I have absolutely no idea what monologues I should do. When I was in this musical theater conservatory this summer, the vocal coaches there selected two songs for me and they fit my voice very well.

So in CMU Pre-College do you have to bring your own songs and monologues to work on or do the teachers there help you select songs and monologues that fit you?

Also, do you feel that CMU Pre-College helps you prepare for college auditions, or even for auditions in general? I'm not particulary talking about whether or not they help you get into CMU in particular, but whether or not they help you with audition techniques and preparing for them.

I was looking at the course lists yesterday and it seemed like while people taking dance lessons everyday and acting lessons, it seems like people only taking singing three times a week and from I can tell it's a group lesson. So do you feel that the singing lessons are helpful?

NotMamaRose

claydavisdbc, my D just returned home from CMU Precollege last weekend, so I think I can address at least some of your questions. First of all, though many kids did bring their own "book" of sheet music/songs and monologues to work on, the teachers are the precollege program certainly *do* work with you to help you find new music and monologues, especially. In my D's case, she was given some monologues and songs by her teachers *and* she was sent to the library to find monologues and songs to use, and I think that is fairly typical.
As to whether the program helps prepare kids for college auditions: I would say, yes, definitely. Kids take an entire Audition class during which they not only learn the protocol for auditioning, but they also work on performing monologues that they can then use (if they choose to) for real college auditions. In addition to that, a typical MT schedule includes the following classes:
* singing (yes, you take a group class in singing. Many kids also pay extra for private voice lessons -- either 30 mins or one hour -- each week)
* acting
* Styles (this is what CMU calls Shakespeare)
* Audition (described above)
* Ballet
* Jazz
* Drama Lit
* and, if you choose, an elective in Playwriting or Directing.
No class is held every day. Classes are held on a Mon., Weds, Friday or Tuesday and Thursday schedule. Dance often does end up being every day, because a kid might have ballet on M,W and Fri and then jazz on Tuesday and Thurs. But a student would not take acting Monday through Friday; he or she would have it either three times a week or twice a week. (I believe I am correct in saying that the total number of hours in each class ends up being the same, meaning Tues. & Thursday classes are longer than those taken three times a week. But I wouldn't swear to that. If you want me to check, I can.)
I hope that's helpful.